BETHLEHEM TWP., Pa. – The conditional use hearing to turn the old Bethlehem Drive-In along Easton Avenue into an apartment complex has been put off until November.
On Monday, representatives for Wind-Drift Real Estate Associates of Bethlehem made the request for a continuance of its conditional use hearing to the Bethlehem Township Board of Commissioners.
The new hearing date has been scheduled for November 15.
David Ronca, partner at Wind-Drift, has proposed a 220-unit garden apartment complex at 3022 Easton Avenue, the site of the former Bethlehem Drive-In.
Plans for what the developer is calling Thirty22 Place include seven 28-unit buildings which would each be three to four stories tall, as well as one three-story, 24-unit building; a 4,000-square-foot community center; and a pool on the site.
The Easton Avenue complex would sit between Hampshire and Butztown roads.
Wind-Drift would still need approvals from the township’s zoning hearing board for the proposed four-story buildings, each with a 50-foot height. Municipal code only allows for three-story buildings currently with a maximum height of 36 feet. Additionally, the developer is requesting a reduction in the number of parking spaces required under municipal code.
The Ronca family has a history of development projects in Bethlehem. Lewis Ronca is one of the developers for the proposed project on the site of the former Martin Tower.